Edmontonians engaging with Earth Hour as event marks decade of climate-change awareness

For a decade now, people across the globe have been turning off their lights at 8:30 p.m. every March 25 for Earth Hour.

In Edmonton, there’s a number of ways to get involved with the climate-change awareness event on Saturday.

Alberta’s capital has taken part in every Earth Hour since 2007, when the event made its debut in Sydney, Australia. According to the City of Edmonton, the occasion offers an opportunity to “reflect on our energy consumption” and “show you care about the planet.”

READ MORE: Earth Hour is 10 years old

Watch below: The world switches off for Earth Hour Saturday night.

0:59 The world switches off for Earth Hour Saturday night

While many homes and businesses in the city will simply flick the light switch and go dark for Earth Hour, others are taking different steps to promote energy efficiency on Saturday.

On Saturday afternoon, teams of two were competing in the third annual Earth Hour Race, which sees participants use sustainable forms of transportation to travel between the University of Alberta, MacEwan University and NAIT campuses.

Post-secondary students across the province are also vying for prizes by taking part in the Earth Hour Campus Challenge to see who can gather the most pledges to go dark for Earth Hour.

The Earth Hour initiative was started as a grassroots gesture by the World Wildlife Fund Australia against human-caused carbon dioxide emissions linked to global warming.

This year, the event will be marked by 7,000 cities across 172 countries.

Watch below: Lights go out across India for Earth Hour.

0:58 Lights go out across India for Earth Hour

For more information on how to get involved, click here.

-With files from Reuters and The Canadian Press